DEAD WEIGHT (Why is this the title?! No correlation. Haha the marvels of editing)

Hello. I’m James Hope. I’m writing this as a testimony of the events that occurred near Okefenokee National Park. This is my story. You may not believe it, but every word is true.

The Arrival

It was a warm summer day in Leesburg, Georgia. My friends and I were heading to the park to celebrate our recent graduation from high school. So we packed up our clothes, tents, sleeping bags, and food and water for the trip. We drove to the park and arrived at mid-afternoon, around 3:00 P.M. EST. I bought the tickets to stay overnight after a brief warning from the park ranger, which none of us really paid any attention to, and drove on. We parked our car and got into the boat, ready to take us to whatever camping site that pleased us. That moment was the last time we were truly safe.

The Others

As we floated on the peat-covered water, we discussed the type of site we wanted to set up our tents on. We were suddenly interrupted by the low roar of another boat somewhere behind us. We all looked back and saw a boat full of about five guys about our age that were apparently camping too. So we slowed down and asked them were a good spot was to camp. One of the guys, the “leader” of them, looked at us quizzically.
“There’s only a few good spots to camp around here, if not only one. The others look safe, but…they say things can get real spooky, late at night.” We all looked at him and slowly stated to drive off. He was creeping us out.

The Campsite

Eventually we found a good enough looking spot. Unfortunately, it was the same spots the other guys were looking for. We got their first, we argued, so they drove off, muttering under their breath. We set up our tents and our friend Tim set up the portable generator and TV. It still ceases to amaze me how he could get 500 channels 50 miles from anywhere. So we chilled and drank, and drank some more, and chilled some more. Then we were so tired that we practically passed out as soon as we walked in our tents. This is when it all happened.

The Brawl

I woke up to the sound of footsteps on the ground. It didn’t bother me too much, because I was tired and thought it was one of my friends. But I was startled whenever I felt the tent being moved! I jumped out of the tent and saw the 5 guys trying to get us out of their campsite! I woke up the other guys, which also alerted the selfish campers. A fight ensued. It was five against three, but we all had taken wrestling any weight training in school, among other things. Things were looking up for us when the leader pulled out a switchblade. It was a big, ugly thing, 6 inches long and black as twilight. No one but me saw it. Tim charged the leader with fists raised. All of a sudden, the knife was in Tim’s chest. Everything stopped. The leader himself looked shocked. They all jumped in the boat and flew off. We sprinted over to Tim, who was bleeding profusely from the wound. We couldn’t stop the bleeding. Tim left us that morning.